How does your workforce compare? Industry MSK benchmarks from real Australian data
Not estimated averages. 19,019 complaint episodes from Australian occupational health records, stratified by industry, body region, mechanism, and job demand class.
19,019
Benchmark population (episodes)
Industry-stratified
Controlled by sector and job demand class
6 dimensions
Body region · mechanism · RTW · recurrence
Real-time
Updated as new encounter data enters
What does a good MSK benchmark look like?
Three reference points that anchor where your organisation should be targeting — and what top performers actually achieve.
National average injury frequency
Atlas MSK uses Safe Work Australia's published national injury frequency rate as the public anchor point for comparison.
Source: Safe Work Australia — Work Health and Safety Statistics
WHA managed cohort
Employers with WorkHealthy Australia occupational health programs achieve an 88% reduction in workers compensation claim volume vs their prior 3-year average.
Top quartile employers
Top quartile performers in the Atlas MSK benchmark dataset achieve 97% full unrestricted duties return-to-work, with an 18.3-day average recovery period.
What you can benchmark
Five benchmark dimensions — each controlled for industry peer group, not national average across all sectors.
Injury rate vs industry
Your workforce injury frequency rate compared against industry-stratified peers. Controlled for sector, job demand class, and workforce size band.
Recurrence rate vs peers
Recurrence within 12 months, by body region. Lumbar recurrence in high-tenure workers runs at 2.3× the cohort average — the benchmark exposes whether your population tracks above or below.
RTW duration by body region
Return-to-work duration by body region and injury mechanism. Identify which injury types are taking significantly longer to resolve in your cohort than in the benchmark population.
Mechanism breakdown
Repetitive strain, acute trauma, postural load — how does your injury mechanism mix compare to sector peers? Mechanism distribution drives prevention strategy.
Body region distribution
Which body regions dominate your injury profile versus the industry average. Lumbar and shoulder are the two highest-frequency regions in Australian occupational health data.
Your position vs percentile
Atlas MSK shows you where you sit in the industry distribution — not just average vs below average, but exact percentile ranking by dimension.
How the benchmarks are calculated
Transparency is a design principle, not a feature. Every benchmark figure has a traceable methodology.
20-year WHA treatment dataset
182,000+ de-identified Australian occupational health episodes from WorkHealthy Australia clinical records, spanning 2004–2024.
19,019 episode validation population
The core benchmark population — complaint episodes with complete outcome data, stratified by industry, body region, mechanism, and care class.
Industry-stratified normalisation
Benchmarks are calculated within industry peer groups — manufacturing vs manufacturing, not manufacturing vs office workers.
Weekly refresh from new encounter data
As new clinical encounter data enters the Atlas MSK pipeline, benchmarks update. Your peer comparison reflects current industry performance, not a static annual snapshot.
Industry-specific benchmarks
We have deeper longitudinal data in these sectors than any other provider in Australia — 20+ years of clinical encounter records, not survey estimates.
Manufacturing
Repetitive strain and lumbar load are the dominant mechanisms. We have deeper stratified data in this sector than any other provider in Australia.
Meat Processing
High-frequency, high-severity MSK profile. 35% average workforce turnover driven partly by injury risk. Atlas MSK has a dedicated benchmark cohort for this sector.
Dr James L Murray
Founder, Work Healthy Australia
20+ years building Australian occupational health programs across manufacturing, food processing, logistics, and construction. The Atlas MSK benchmark dataset is drawn from WHA's own clinical treatment records — the same data that informs our employer programs. This is not licensed or purchased survey data.
See how your workforce benchmarks
A 30-minute demo. Your industry, your injury profile, your percentile position against 19,019 Australian episodes.
Book a demoRelated